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2010-11-26 - Those with Power Must Aid Those with None
Night, and Elizraim has managed to get emself well and truly lost once more. It's now at least a couple hours past when ey said ey intended to return to eir temporary home. It would be easier if ey felt safe about using eir wings--ey's quite certain that ey could find eir way anywhere in the sky. But ey's trying to appear like one of the mortals, and the mortals don't have wings, right? So, somehow, ey ended up in Mutant Town...and in Mutant Town, ey's found trouble. On the bright side, ey didn't start it. On the less bright side, ey did willingly get involved, and things are looking a bit bad. And so, someone nearby the dingy alley ey's currently in might overhear em calling, in a loud, demanding, royal tone, "Did you not hear my command? Unhand that person at once!" The others in the alley are a gang of three, who were presently harassing and robbing a young woman, likely intending more. One of them, a big man covered in tattoos, is standing back in the alley and maintaining his hold on the woman. The other two--thinner men with similar tattoos--have come up by Elizraim. All three are predictably regarding em with more amusement than anything else. "Look at this," the big guy says. "Kid thinks he's king or something." A few odd scars on the alley walls indicate that mutant powers may have been involved--on both sides. "I dunno," one of the two near Elizraim says, peering at the child's face. "Queen, maybe. Think this one's a chick too." He leans in close. "Better run away, little lady. We might..." That's about as far as he gets before Elizraim punches him as hard as ey can right in the throat. Elizraim isn't all that strong, but that's still enough to keel the man over and have him wheezing. Elizraim...disappeared. Terra's first thought is not to be too alarmed, the kid is pretty tough. On the other hand...ey's also a bit of a trouble magnet. She doesn't have the emotional attachment to em to search for em telepathically over any range...she's been doing so the old-fashioned way for about the last hour and has finally caught eir 'scent', as it were. As she approaches, though, she realizes what's going on. Crap. For the moment, Elizraim isn't utilizing eir powers, either. Ey's trying eir best to get through this without giving up the fact that ey isn't human. Unfortunately, what ey's unaware of is that eir opponents aren't your average humans either...they're mutants. The one that went down is still gagging, but the other thin man laughs and extends a hand, sending out a light concussive blast that knocks the young royal back into the alley wall. Cockily, he walks up to Elizraim and grabs em by the shirt, lifting em up. Elizraim, however, got eir hands on a fallen brick, and swings it up at eir assailant, clubbing him upside the head, making him lose his grip and dazing him badly. Before Elizraim can move, the one ey hit in the throat, recovered, sends out a strand of some sort of material, wrapping around Elizraim's arms and legs to hold em still. And it's going to be a moment before she approaches. This time, she wore her costume under her clothes and brought her mask. Elizraim, though, might well recognize her by her aura. She doesn't make a dramatic entrance per se...instead, she's heading towards? The guy who's just watching. She's not stupid. And she's hoping to get behind him while he's focusing on harassing Elizraim. Elizraim, for his part, is realizing that ey doesn't have much of a choice in whether ey reveals emself or not. Struggling against the strands, ey manages to get one hand pointed at their source, and the hand glows in silver light for a moment...before a beam of that light lances out into the strand user. Terra might recognize it as a sort of concentrated empathic blast...and its effect on the man is immediately clear. He gives a yell of pain, putting his hands to his head, and quivers as he loses balance and falls against the wall. His strands loosen and fall away from Elizraim...who proceeds to pick eir brick back up and club the Concussive blast user in the head again, knocking him out cold. The big guy, frowning, tosses the woman he's been holding aside and starts to walk towards Elizraim, as spikes start to grow out from various areas on his body. They're small right now, but they're clearly still growing--as a few get to completion, they look like around a foot long, and very sharp. They aren't absolutely everywhere, though--there are holes in the coverage. Terra Black frowns as the spikes start growing. And makes her move before they can get any longer, leaping to aim a high kick towards the big guy's back. She has no clue what was going on between him and the woman, but he's beating on somebody under her family's protection. The big man grunts in pain as the kick lands hard, and loses his balance, falling forward and catching himself on the wall. He turns around, angrily, and spots his assailant, raising both arms and trying to grab her in a big, spiky bearhug. Judging from the size of those spikes...he's not aiming to be nonlethal. Strand slowly gets to his feet, and sends his strands out at Elizraim again, whipping at the child's feet, but Elizraim jumps over them...just in time to get smacked in the face by another set of strands, knocking em to the ground and making em lose his hat and hood. Frustrated, Elizraim gets to eir knees...and his spear flows into eir hands. The next set of strands comes in, and ey slashes right at them, cutting through--and is surprised to hear the strand user cry out in pain, as some blood rushes forth from the sliced strands. Smiling viciously, Elizraim moves in towards the man, spear at the ready. "Your power and your weakness are one...I shall worry none over you, for you seem no threat at all." Terra Black is fast...although one of the spikes does graze her superficially, she mostly avoids them. We won't go into where she aims her next kick at. Ahem. She doesn't seem at all concerned by the obvious danger she's in, although she's twisted around him enough that he's not going to get that bear hug. The big guy is aware of Danger #1 when you're a male fighting a female, but unfortunately for him, he's still too disoriented from the first kick and his lunge for the grapple to do much about it. The kick hits him hard exactly where aimed, and he more gasps than yelps, crumpling to his knees. It's a testament to his strength that he still immediately reacts...as immediately as anyone can after that, swinging a big, spiky arm at her in a blow more meant to keep her away from him than anything else. Strand, fearful now, realizes he has to be more cautious against his foe, and creates more strands from his body, beginning to wave them in an unpredictable pattern. Elizraim is momentarily distracted, spotting the woman helping em...and the results of her kick...and at that moment, Strand starts to strike again. A glancing blow strikes Elizraim in the side, calling eir attention back to eir own fight, but the young royal ducks under a second and dodges in towards Strand. Panicking, Strand swings several strikes at Elizraim, and the child is able to slice through two strands--causing Strand to yelp again--deflect a third, and slide under a fourth. And then, ey's right in front of Strand, though ey's on the ground. Now...where did that costumed person aim? Here, I think? ey thinks. Ey swings a foot up, and Strand reacts rather similarly to the big man...except that, already hurting, he up and collapses, right on top of a surprised Elizraim. Terra Black is going to block the arm with an upward strike. She's bleeding...it just doesn't seem to be bothering her that much. "Tough guy. You really think you can take me, don't you." If all else fails, she'll cheat. If he has a mind to mess with, that is. The big man cries out in pain again as Terra strikes his arm hard...was that a cracking sound? "Dirty *****!" he shouts, getting to his feet--though he's still wincing with every move. "I know I can." With one arm hanging hurt, he aims a big, heavy kick at her. On the bright side, there's no spikes on the underside of his foot, which he's trying to hit her with. On the downside...that's a very big foot. Elizraim, meanwhile, struggles and slowly slides out from underneath eir bigger--but mostly unconscious--opponent, and gets to eir knees, glaring at the man. "How dare you." Ey stands, and kicks the mostly unconscious man in the head--rendering him fully unconscious. Terra Black does get kicked this time. She's thrown backwards...which at least puts her out of reach of the spikes. "Oof!" She's not down, though, picking herself back up quickly. Elizraim frowns, turning his attention to the display before em, and holds his spear towards the big man--though ey's still quite distant from him. Ey's not sure who the smaller person is, but ey knows the big one is eir enemy, and the enemy of your enemy is quite possibly your loyal servant. Elizraim doesn't have friends. Ey looks towards the masked person, puzzled. "Your assistance has been acceptable. Do you require aid?" And what in the name of the throne is that person wearing? ey thinks. The big guy, for the moment, is just trying to shake off The Kick using the time he earned. "Wouldn't mind, but try not to get stabbed." It's the first time she's spoken, of course. And then she's circling the big guy again, looking for an opening. The first injury he gave her is almost healed already. The big guy doesn't look entirely happy with this. He's gotten about as close to shaking off The Kick as can be expected, and has adopted a defensive posture...he has some experience street fighting, clearly, and now he's aiming to actually use it. But he's having to face two people...one of whom has been kicking his butt, and the other of whom, while rather small, is armed. He can't back down, though...it'd get around, and he doesn't want to lose face. Elizraim might be able to pick up who she is from her voice, if she was careless, and if ey actually bothered to care enough about other people to learn their voices that well. As it is, ey still doesn't recognize her. Ey nods, stepping forward and spinning his spear a few times, finally leveling it at the man again. Ey feints, then strikes in at the man, but the man manages a sideways dodge and swings up a leg, forcing Elizraim to dive aside and roll to eir knees. This, however, might give Terra just the opening she needs. One leg...that's the perfect opportunity to strike with her own and try to sweep it out from under him. Elizraim surely knows enough to know that this young woman is pretty well trained. The big man is unable to counter her attempt, and his remaining leg is swept up, leaving him to fall to the ground...hard enough that some of his spikes stick in the pavement. "Graah!" He struggles to push off the ground, slowly starting to pull them out. Evidently, he has to have all the spikes out or none of them. Elizraim narrows eir eyes, watching the woman's movements. This person fights well... ey thinks. Ey steps forward, and stabs eir spear right at the man's right leg without hesitation. The man screams as the blade pierces deep, and tries to grab at Elizraim, but pinned as he is, he can't reach. The child raises the spear again, starting to aim for the other leg. Terra Black sighs...and aims a precise blow at the man's chin. Best to knock him out before the bloodthirsty royal does any more damage. The man is barely able to move, and takes the blow right on the chin. He's absorbed a lot of punishment...but that, finally, takes him down for good. His head slumps back as he falls unconscious. To eir credit, seeing the man knocked out, Elizraim refrains from taking eir strike at the other leg. Ey steps back, holding the spear defensively, and looks around at eir fallen foes. With all three out, ey turns eir attention to the masked figure before em. "Now...state your intent." The spear is still out, but is held defensively, not aimed for her. "You seemed to be outnumbered. I thought I'd even the odds." Then she's moving towards the woman...not quite turning her back on Elizraim. "What happened here?" she asks her, gently. Elizraim nods, resting the butt of the spear on the ground, adopting a somewhat more relaxed position. "I...they..." the woman says, tears coming to her eyes. "They...they grabbed me, and..." She sniffs. "Thank you..." "Cowardly, vile brigands," Elizraim says, indicating the three fallen men. "Unworthy of existence. Were I ruler of this land, I should order them all killed at once. Good citizens should fear nothing when walking the streets, even in the darkest hours." Terra Black frowns. "This is Mutant Town. The cops might come, eventually." She glances at the woman. "You should still call them. Hopefully, though, these guys learned their lesson." She turns to Elizraim. "You are not...it wouldn't be right for people who aren't the government to go around killing bad guys." And in her mind, it's not right for the government to do it either... "Which is why these villains yet live," Elizraim replies, coolly. "Though I shall not give word that it shall always end this way." Eir spear flows back into bracelet form, hiding itself in the sleeve of eir hoodie, and ey moves over to eir fallen ballcap, picking it back up. "I shall spare no thought for the safety of those who wish me ill...but neither shall I slay one already beaten." The woman, still trembling, slowly nods and pulls a cell phone out of her pocket with shaky hands, dialing the police. "Be careful." Terra's now moving to check on the bad guys...levels of unconsciousness, et cetera. Make sure none of them die, although she's not going to actually heal them. She doesn't want them waking up. The three are unconscious, and hurt, but none are in any real danger. The two Elizraim fought first did sustain strikes to the head, but Elizraim isn't all that strong. And the big guy is bleeding, but not so badly it'll be life-threatening anytime soon. Strand's bleeding seemed to stop as soon as he passed out and the strands all retracted. All three will want some medical treatment, but none urgently. Elizraim gives a "hmph" as Terra even bothers checking the three, tugging eir ballcap on and putting eir hood up to hide eir mark and eir hair. The eyes ey can't do anything about with just sunglasses...not at night like this. "The woman--she speaks to the city guard?" ey asks, looking warily back at the cellular phone as ey thinks, Another strange device...yet the mortals seem so familiar with them... Terra Black nods. "She does. And they'll take these guys into custody." She hopes. "Hopefully we also scared them." A kid and a woman kicked their butts, after all. Elizraim nods. "I trust that they shall." Ey checks emself over--fortunately, the blood from the fight seems to have missed em. Ey regards her for a few moments, and frowns. "What is this strange clothing you wear? A uniform? Are you of this land's guard, or the military?" Terra Black shakes her head. "Neither, and we'd both better be out of here before the guard gets here. They might ask awkward questions." Elizraim frowns, and looks as though ey might ask another question, but then nods. Ey looks out at the street, and then around the alleyway, spotting a fire escape that leads up to a rooftop. Ey strides over to it, starting to climb, and points over at the woman. "You shall speak no word of my involvement, or you shall face my wrath." Not terribly good alley-side manner, but hey, ey did help, right? Ey continues climbing. Terra Black follows Elizraim, mostly because ey picked the same route of escape. "You need to be more careful. If the guard catches you playing vigilante...they'll cause trouble for you and your parents." Which in this case means her father. She does wonder if she can't get Eli to wear a mask. Elizraim looks back at her as ey climbs. "Was I to leave that woman to suffer? No others appeared to assist, until you. Were I not 'playing vigilante,' she would likely be dead." Ey turns away from her again, and finishes eir climb. "I sought no danger tonight, nor shall I any other, but I shall not permit the innocent to be troubled in my presence. Those with power must aid those with none." Terra Black nods. "Except that people want to control those who have power. Plus, they think children should focus on their studies." If ey can't work out who she is now... Elizraim hmphs. "Then they shall find what it means to try to control the Kaumrael," ey says, darkly. "I hardly think the latter applies...I do not intend to spend my nights with this sort of activity. I shall aid when I see such things before my eyes...nothing more. Unlike you, evidently...given that you had such strange garb at the ready to hide your identity. Did you come to search for me, when I was late? Or is this a regular nightly excursion?" "Yeah, I did. I was honestly...I thought you'd managed to get completely lost. New York's pretty confusing. But I wasn't dressed like this. I had it under my clothes." Terra lets out a breath. "The thing is, if anyone finds out you're other than human...they'll try to control you. It's how people are." Elizraim refuses to admit that her evaluation was quite right. "I merely decided upon a longer stroll." Ey nods. "I attempted to keep my nature a secret as I aided, but I was unaware of the nature of my opponents...this required me to reveal myself. A tactical error on my part, borne of concern for the woman." Somehow ey manages to make it sound like it is the woman's fault entirely, even while admitting guilt. "In the future, perhaps I shall do as you have, and carry a mask to hide my face." Ey scowls. "However, should any person actually try...I cannot promise that person shall remain alive. I shall never be enslaved." Terra Black nods. "A mask is good, not sticking around when the police show up. Using a different name. All of that would free you up to be able to use your powers properly." Elizraim nods. "This plan seems acceptable...and I have little desire to speak to your guard...what was the word? Police? I have little desire to speak to them in any case." Ey sighs. "Quite irritating...but I suppose it must be so, to live among these barbarians. I shall assign you the task of acquiring the necessary equipment." Terra Black smiles. "Don't worry. It'll all be taken care of." Not a hard task, really. "And hey. We aren't all barbarians. Except in the most literal sense of the word." Elizraim shrugs. "That remains to be seen. I admit that your family, with the exception of Kei, appears more civilized than most mortals I have met thus far. Your parent in particular." Ey walks over to the other side of the rooftop, looking out over the street. "You mentioned using a different name. When you are masked, what is the name by which I should call you?" "Panacea," Terra explains, quickly. "And Kei is jealous, I think. He's adopted, which...you may know that can make people a bit unsure of themselves at times." Elizraim nods. "Panacea." Ey looks back over eir shoulder at her. "I am aware of Kei's history. I suppose his dedication to his adoptive parent is admirable. But if he fears that I shall attempt to usurp your parent's care, he need not. I have no desire to find family among mortals." Terra Black studies you for a long moment. "There's actually a lot I'd like to know about your people." Like that, oh, repeated 'mortals' thing. Elizraim shrugs. "Then ask your questions. I shall answer as I wish. I do not care to speak much of them, but it would be rude to utterly refuse you." Terra Black shakes her head. "I don't want to, you know, push or make you uncomfortable or anything." Sure, she's curious, but... Elizraim frowns. "It makes me more uncomfortable to know that you wish to know something but are not asking." Ey looks back out at the street. "I feel as though I am being studied. Ask your questions, or stop your wondering." Terra Black hrms. "Are you an elf?" Hey, she's been holding that question back from the first time she saw Eli. Elizraim blinks, and turns to face her, stepping over to her. "That is your question?" Ey sniffs. "I am no such thing. I'' am of the Mioemet. ''Surely you mortals must have some knowledge of us...although I imagine it is probably all wrong, as I sincerely doubt mortals of the past were significantly more intelligent than they are today." Ey gives a short laugh. "An elf?" Terra Black hrms. "Well, you kind of fit some of the stories about elves. Maybe people got different things confused together. Especially as not everything in the past got written down." Elizraim nods. "Yes...that is what one should expect, from mortals. No wonder they needed so much guidance in the past." Ey waves a hand, dismissively. "But no matter. I am no elf." Terra Black nods. "Mioemet." She even pronounces it close to right. Not quite, but it's the first attempt at a strange word. Elizraim has the grace not to be insulted or to comment on how poorly mortals pronounce things. Ey does recognize eir own strong accent, after all. "So that you shall not embarrass yourself in the future, I shall show you how to recognize a Mioemet." Ey pulls off eir hood and ballcap. "Though some may hide these traits, of course. Their hair and eyes will be as mine are...as will their ears." Ey pulls back eir hair, showing one oddly-ridged ear--it actually looks almost like a feather. Ey indicates the crest on eir forehead. "Nobility will also bear a family crest...so behave accordingly. And finally, of course...they will have feathered wings, though like mine, they may hide them." Terra Black nods. "So, the family crest...is that something that's like...put on you, like a tattoo?" Elizraim frowns. "It...is not 'put on us.' It is part of us, from the beginning. When we come into being, it is formed with us." Terra Black nods. "Got it. Sorry. I don't really know that much about magic and how it works and what the limits are." Elizraim shrugs. "It is simply a part of us. I do not think it necessary that you understand how it works." Ey pulls eir ballcap on, and then puts eir hood back up. "Have I then fulfilled your curiosity, or is there still more you wish to know?" Terra Black ehs. "I have enough to worry about with understanding how the things I do work." She flickers a grin. "And hey, you can ask whatever questions you want of me." Elizraim frowns. "In that case, there is one thing," ey says, crossing eir arms. "Though it is more a need for confirmation." Ey nods in her direction. "You are an example of a female, correct? And the people we fought are examples of males?" Terra Black nods. "Right. Let me guess...doesn't work quite the same way where you come from?" Elizraim nods. "Thank you. I believed myself correct, but it would not do for me to embarrass myself in conversation." Ey shakes eir head. "I am familiar with the fact that mortals have...the word is gender, yes? But this is not so with the Mioemet, so I am unused to such distinctions." And truth be told, it'd be pretty easy to take eir for male or female, depending how ey was dressed. Terra Black hrms. "I think I'll carry on using 'he' for you. 'It' is rather insulting...English doesn't have a good neuter pronoun for, you know, intelligent beings." Elizraim shrugs. "As you wish. I have no concern for such matters, unless such things put me at a disadvantage. If there is nothing else, then change clothing, and I shall allow you to escort me to your home." Category:Logs